JP Morgan Said Selling India Fund Business to Apollo and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

Apollo India partner Nipun Sahni may soon take over JP Morgan’s fund business

India may be the hottest market for some international real estate investors this year, but that doesn’t mean that everyone who enters the market will win, as US financial giant JP Morgan decides to give up and go home after trying to build a fund business there. Also in the news today, JD.com keeps investing in online retail and China’s sovereign wealth fund says its on the lookout for more European deals. Keep reading for all these stories and more.

JP Morgan is in talks to sell its India-focused real estate funds, but says it remains committed to real estate in the Asia Pacific region. The US banking giant is planning to sell two of its India-focused private equity real estate funds to Apollo Global Management for a nominal amount after failing to scale up to the size it wanted, according to accounts in the Indian media.

The New York-based bank follows a move by other global banks who have exited their mutual fund businesses in India due to competitive returns offered by local fixed deposits and competition from local players with deeper networks. Read more>>

JD.Com, China’s second-biggest e-commerce player, is turning its attention to the high-end retail sector with its participation in an investment in Asia’s largest online luxury shopping platform Secoo Holding.

Secoo has secured USD175 million through a cooperation agreement with JD and the Asian unit of consumer-focused private equity firm L Catterton, the Beijing-based upscale retail platform said in a statement. Read more>>

China’s CIC sovereign wealth fund sees an attractive investment environment in Europe and plans to invest more in the region, its president said on Wednesday in Paris. Speaking at a financial conference in Paris, China Investment Corp. President Tu Guangshao said there were quite a few buoyant industries in Europe.

“China Investment Corporation is prepared to broaden and deepen its investments in Europe,” he said, adding it would work in partnership with financial institution firms to make more investments. Read more>>

Greenwich West, a 30-story luxury condominium building by China Construction America (CCA), broke ground Tuesday in Manhattan. Greenwich West is located at 110 Charlton Street on the west side of Manhattan’s artsy Soho neighborhood just steps from the West Village, in the thriving district known as Hudson Square.

The building is developed by a joint venture led by Strategic Capital, the investment and development arm of CSCEC subsidiary CCA, which has been operating in the U.S. construction market for more than 30 years. Read more>>

Casa Sophia in District 9 is up for collective sale with a reserve price of $36 million. Owners at the freehold, 12-unit development in Mount Sophia could receive between $2.69 million and $3.4 million.

Based on the reserve price, the land rate translates to an estimated $1,390 per sq ft per plot ratio (psf ppr), excluding development charge. Under the Urban Redevelopment Authority’s Master Plan 2014, the site is zoned residential and could be redeveloped into an estimated 34 units, based on a 753 sq ft per unit size. Read more>>

Hong Kong’s home prices are showing no signs of letting up, as developers continue to raise their offer price with each successive sales launch, confident that there are enough eager property buyers to snap up any additional supply that goes on the market.

For proof, look no further than The Garrison’s 118-unit apartment complex in Sha Tin, developed by Far East Consortium International. The developer raised its prices by 14 per cent in a span of four days this week, adding HK$762,000 to the price of a 251 square-foot (23 square metre) unit in the single-storey tower, for a jaw-dropping HK$6.22 million, or HK$24,804 per sq ft. Read more>>